OMFG

I feel the level of frustration rising.  I have shooting pains in the back of my eyes, it alternates.  Why?  Because the film I was working on for over half a year and had gone through two cast changes with, has NOT been promoted as much as I think it should be.  It also does not look as polished as it should be.  The audio sucks in the teaser trailer that was FINALLY released the other day, and it features mostly one actor throughout.  The main character who appears from the beginning of the film and shows in the final scene as we fade out, is NOT as heavily featured and I show in one lone clip that is a throwaway shot, a quick cut in and out, and it's not even a good edit.

I've suggested film festivals and expressed my excitement on the film's completion and stayed with the positive feedback when the film's writer/director posted the film "poster", which looked like something a third grader did.  It just looks so...cheap.  Like there's no heart or thought in the process, like everything was done last minute within five seconds because someone was too busy or worse, too lazy or too cheap, to have someone else do it properly.

Even though I do not have a degree in graphic design, I know what's visually pleasing, what sets the composition in a picture or a poster.  I just felt it could be done better. 

I have to put my ego aside, because I noticed that one actor seems to get the most exposure out of this -- the first pictures posted on the movie's FB page featured this actor's face alone.  The theme continued into the trailer. 

I tell myself part of the lesson here is that ultimately I am not in creative control, I relinquish that when I work on other people's projects.  On the other hand, I don't recall the role of this actor being the lead or the focus of the film.  Perhaps the writer director felt otherwise, and is pushing this actor.

What surprises me is this actor was so resistant to the writer director, very passive aggressive and was very critical of the W/D.  And yet....here we are, with this actor getting the floor.  Interesting.

There are a couple of projects the W/D claims they want to do with me, but it's been slow going.  Meanwhile, they've found the time to punch out a five minute segment with two other actors and show it at some public function.  There were no invites to this, and seems to have been very low key at some bar.

As I observed other people promoting projects, I had asked if there would be a website for the film and have yet to see one.  There is no place to view this film's teaser, unless they go to the FB page.  And the trailer absolutely sucks.  It's not something I would show with any pride.  As I said, I barely appear and it's a showcase for one actor.

I'm not really sure what to do.  I have spread the word to check out the film, and I doubt a lot of them are going to make the trek to a place that is not readily available by public transportation anyway.  And the people I know don't have cars, we live in a city that doesn't really require a person to have one.

I'm disappointed, a little embarrassed, and want to continue to keep holding my head up and stay positive.

A part of me is like fuck it, it's not your pride and joy and the only one looking like an idiot is the W/D for putting this out unpolished.  But it did get picked up by a film festival.  So....maybe this actor carried the film so well that we only have this person to thank.  We will see.  Next month the film will have its official screening and we have a red carpet, my first!  I don't know WHAT I am going to wear!